Mapping the Organizational Sources of the Global Delegitimization Campaign Against Israel in the UK
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MappingMapping thethe OrganizationalOrganizational SourcesSources ofof thethe GlobalGlobal DelegitimizationDelegitimization CampaignCampaign againstagainst IsraelIsrael inin thethe UKUK Ehud Rosen Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs המרכז הירושלמי לענייני ציבור ומדינה © 2010 Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs 13 Tel Hai Street, Jerusalem, Israel Tel. 972-2-561-9281 Fax. 972-2-561-9112 Email: [email protected] www.jcpa.org ISBN 978-965-218-094-0 Production Director: Edna Weinstock-Gabay Graphic Design: Rami & Jacky - www.ramijaki.co.il Mapping the Organizational Sources of the Global Delegitimization Campaign against Israel in the UK Ehud Rosen 3 Ehud Rosen specializes in modern political Islam, focusing on the ideology and history of the Muslim Brotherhood. He lived in London for five years, while working toward his PhD at SOAS, University of London. He currently teaches at Bar-Ilan University. 4 Table of contents Foreword ......................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................7 Part I: The importance of ideology ......................................................................................................................................................................................9 1. The Society of the Muslim Brothers (Brotherhood) .............................................................................................................................9 I. General introduction .............................................................................................................................................................................................................................9 II. The internationalization of the movement ..........................................................................................................................................10 III. Adaptation of Islamic jurisprudence to life in the West .............................................................................................12 IV. Palestine, Hamas, and the Oslo agreements: A new phase ................................................................................13 2 . The British far left ............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................14 I. The Socialist Workers’ Party (SWP) ...........................................................................................................................................................................14 II. The International Marxist Group (IMG) ........................................................................................................................................................15 3. Forming the “red-green alliance” .......................................................................................................................................................................................17 I. The Muslim Brotherhood in the UK arena ................................................................................................................................................17 II. Early beginnings ......................................................................................................................................................................................................................................18 III. 9/11 and the Stop the War Coalition ..............................................................................................................................................................19 4. Expanding the alliance: The Cairo conferences 2002-2007 ..............................................................................................20 5 . Moving to politics: The RESPECT-Unity coalition ...............................................................................................................................22 Part II: The main organizations involved in the campaign ..........................................................................................24 1. The Muslim Association of Britain (MAB) and the British Muslim Initiative (BMI) .................24 2. The Palestinian Return Centre (PRC) ............................................................................................................................................................................27 3. The Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC) ............................................................................................................................................................30 4. Middle East Monitor (MEMO) ....................................................................................................................................................................................................33 5. Viva Palestina ............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................35 6. The Islamic Human Rights Commission (IHRC) .......................................................................................................................................36 7. The Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) ...................................................................................................................................37 8. Jews for Justice for the Palestinians (JfJfP).......................................................................................................................................................39 Part III: Who are the ”mainstreaming“ agents? ....................................................................................................................................41 I. Politics .......................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................41 II. Media ........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................42 III. Trade unions .............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................42 IV. The academy ............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................43 V. Israel’s lack of a PR strategy ...........................................................................................................................................................................................................44 VI. The Global Boycott Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) Movement ....................................................................45 Mapping the Main Forces behind Global Delegitimization of Israel in the UK ...............47 5 6 Foreword In mid-December 2009, Member of Knesset Tzipi Livni, Israel’s former foreign minister, was due to arrive in London and make a speech at a Jewish National Fund (JNF) event, held at the Hendon Hall Hotel in London. Having had a warrant issued for her to be arrested for alleged war crimes while serving as a minister during the Second Lebanon War and Operation Cast Lead, Livni canceled her plans and never came to Britain. A clip, still available on YouTube,1 shows two and a half minutes of a demonstration held in front of the hotel. This is a rather small demonstration; the few dozen protesters chant slogans such as “Zionists are terrorists” and “Free Palestine.” They are holding signboards referring to “Apartheid in Palestine,” and calling to bring “war criminals” to justice and to boycott Israeli goods. A closer look reveals that these signboards either carry the logo of the British Muslim Initiative (BMI), a main Muslim Brotherhood front in Britain, or of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC) and its Boycott Israeli Goods (BIG) Campaign. Despite the small number of participants, top UK Brotherhood (Hamas’s parent movement) figures are featured such as like Dr. Kemal Helbawy, Muhammad Sawalha, and Zaher Birawi, alongside top PSC figures such as Betty Hunter. In the clip, Hunter says they will pursue “these people” wherever and whenever they can. She also tells the crowd about a decision taken the same week by the British government for supermarkets to label Israeli-settlement goods, and says they have to ensure that “this small step…is turned into a huge movement of boycotting all Israeli goods.” Both the warrant for Livni’s arrest and this demonstration, organized by the same coalition, tell in a nutshell the story of the last decade, in which Britain has become the main leader of an international effort to